The news is more than just Big Ben and an alleged cover up. ESPN, for some reason, refuses to even run the story, likely not wanting to smear Ben's name.
I debated whether or not to even write about this scandalous report. Ben Roethlisberger is not a Detroit athlete. Yet, some of the thatballdontlie readers are Miami (OH) grads and follow his career closely. I, as well, have always liked Ben as a personality and a player. He's gritty, wily, and a pretty darn good interview on PTI. But this story may derail all of that, and, even more surprisingly, ESPN is choosing to ignore it. I think it's worth discussion.
Now I won't go into the details, but Ben was accused of a serious crime that occurred at the Lake Tahoe Harrah's nearly a year ago. Both the NFL and the Steelers organization are investigating the allegations. The AP, CNN, and most other major news outlets reported the story yesterday. But not ESPN. Why? The only reason would be that ESPN wants to protect their relationship with the star QB. At best, this smacks of favoritism. At worst, racism.
ESPN may claim they are an sports entertainment outlet only. They have no responsibility to report news. Yet, their main page lists "Headlines" and "Top Stories" and even links directly to ABC News! When OJ was accused of killing his wife, ESPN covered that story like tarp on a baseball field. Kobe was accused of raping a girl in Colorado, and that story as well was all over ESPN. They have no issue with scandals. No issue with reporting allegations. No prior history at all with wanting to protect an athlete's innocence (until proven guilty). They've reported the legal troubles of Jayson Williams, Pacman Jones, Donte Stallworth, and, of course, Michael Vick. Most of these stories appear on the "ESPN.com news service". News? For some strange reason, I harken back to that scene from Good Morning Vietnam...
News –noun
1. a report of a recent event; intelligence; information: His family has had no news of his whereabouts for months.
This is a big-time black-eye for ESPN.
There is now a small blurb on ESPN under headlines: Roethlisberger vows to fight "reckless" lawsuit.
ReplyDeleteits a video. not an article.
The news is not necessarily journalism.
I suppose it continues the "selective" theme. ESPN does not want to anger Roethlisberger and chooses to broadcast/report that's headlined "Roethlisberger says he'll fight 'reckless' suit".
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't say anything about the actual suit itself or any of the scandalizing details. I normally wouldn't notice, but ESPN is under the microscope with this one.